Dillards 52: Making Life Look Complicated

[Georgiana]

1 minute ago, QuiverFullofBooks said:

So have y’all seen Derick’s latest tweet? He’s saying he should write a book to set the record straight! People are encouraging him to do it!

Derick Dillard is welcome to nail himself upon any cross he wants.  But before he starts thinking this will make him some sort of savior, he should remember that 99.99999% of people nailed to crosses were common criminals.  I sincerely doubt that Derick is a blameless, sacrificial lamb in all of this, which seems to be a sort of a prerequisite for cross-based execution working out in your favor.   

[Jenn The Heathen]

Didn’t Derick say after Sam was born that “two is for quitters?”  Doesn’t really fit with the emergency hysterectomy.

[libgirl2]

1 minute ago, Jenn The Heathen said:

Didn’t Derick say after Sam was born that “two is for quitters?”  Doesn’t really fit with the emergency hysterectomy.

No, that is true. 

[anjulibai]

1 hour ago, HarryPotterFan said:

How does JB expect his empire to last? He keeps his kids unprepared for the world, undereducated, brainwashed, and reliant upon him. What happens when his bajillion grandkids reach adulthood with zero education? What about their kids? What’s going to happen to all these kidults when JB dies? Does he not care since he won’t be around or does he think he’ll live forever?

I also wouldn’t assume anything based of TLC not responding and saying the Duggars do get paid. There would probably be some legal issues with that kind of disclosure. They also might have a policy not to directly respond to their “stars” (or balls of flatulence, as I said in a previous thread) having meltdowns, or think it’s not worth their time.

I think a lot of fundies truly believe they live in The End Times, and they don't really expect to need to plan too much for the future. I mean, sure Jim Bob knows he needs to make money, but that's just his instinctual greed. He probably believes, though, that by the time his grandkids are reaching adulthood they'll be raptured up to the Lord and won't have to worry about pesky jobs or making ends meet. 

26 minutes ago, QuiverFullofBooks said:

So have y’all seen Derick’s latest tweet? He’s saying he should write a book to set the record straight! People are encouraging him to do it!

Called it earlier!

[Jenn The Heathen]

4 minutes ago, anjulibai said:

I think a lot of fundies truly believe they live in The End Times, and they don't really expect to need to plan too much for the future. I mean, sure Jim Bob knows he needs to make money, but that's just his instinctual greed. He probably believes, though, that by the time his grandkids are reaching adulthood they'll be raptured up to the Lord and won't have to worry about pesky jobs or making ends meet. 

Or maybe he just doesn’t care.  Just because he’s a godly man doesn’t mean he’s not a selfish prick.

[QuiverFullofBooks]

Pickles commented on Derick’s tweet and said that his book wouldn’t make any more sense than his tweets.

[justoneoftwo]

1 minute ago, QuiverFullofBooks said:

Pickles commented on Derick’s tweet and said that his book wouldn’t make any more sense than his tweets.

Is it just me or is this more likely to make him write one?

[Buzzard]

Just now, justoneoftwo said:

Is it just me or is this more likely to make him write one?

I'd buy his book.  I bet it would sell more copies than the ghost written duggar bullshit.

[ViolaSebastian]

Oh man, this is the best snark news ever! @Destiny better shore up the servers, Derick is gonna write a book! 

I'm seriously all aboard this slow-motion train wreck. Please, everybody keep egging him on to get writing. 

[anjulibai]

18 minutes ago, Jenn The Heathen said:

Or maybe he just doesn’t care.  Just because he’s a godly man doesn’t mean he’s not a selfish prick.

Oh, I agree, he is a selfish prick. I guess what I'm saying is, he justifies his being a selfish prick by religion. 

Because, you know, Christianity is all about being a selfish prick. 

[allthegoodnamesrgone]

I wonder if him writing a tell all about how awful his In-laws are will cause JB to make Jill dump his sorry ass? Or would they dump Jill and make her stay with her husband? Honestly she's going to lose either way.  I would rather JILL wrote the book and dumped Derrick and her parents. That I'd buy I think Derrick is enough of a sleaze ball I wouldn't put any money into anything he did.

[Destiny]

Oh man, this is the best snark news ever! [mention=11277]Destiny[/mention] better shore up the servers, Derick is gonna write a book! 
I'm seriously all aboard this slow-motion train wreck. Please, everybody keep egging him on to get writing. 

I just got us new ones. We are READY!

[Georgiana]

33 minutes ago, anjulibai said:

I think a lot of fundies truly believe they live in The End Times, and they don't really expect to need to plan too much for the future. I mean, sure Jim Bob knows he needs to make money, but that's just his instinctual greed. He probably believes, though, that by the time his grandkids are reaching adulthood they'll be raptured up to the Lord and won't have to worry about pesky jobs or making ends meet. 

That "End Times" obsession (also known as Millenarianism, and it has a LONG history with Christian movements) goes in and out of fashion, and since it is currently OUT of fashion, it's easy to forget how IN it was when this movement was big and when the Duggs were coming up through it.  We used to have threads ALL THE TIME on the snark board about some guy or another saying the world would end on Tuesday (don't forget your raincoat!), and there were many cases of fundies making piss poor financial decisions based on how the world was ending anyway so who cares about setting money away, followed by further cases of fundies actually PRAYING the world would end soon as their financial chickens came home to roost.  I remember that during my college years, there was about 1 prediction of the apocalypse per year.  It was a big thing.  People were really into it.  But after 2012 and Nostradamus and the (misreading/misunderstanding of the) Maya Calendar came and went, people kind of got over it and got tired of believing the sky was falling.  It'll be back, I'm sure.  I find the ancient Chinese estimate of things returning in 60 year cycles is pretty good, so probably around 2068 we'll start seeing this all play out again.  Maybe this time it'll be with robots and a calendar app gone rouge.  

But anyway, A LOT of people in this movement genuinely believed that we would not be here right now.  That their children might NOT grow up to need jobs.  That keeping them pure to be raptured was more important than education.  That IF they were still here, that society would be destabilized anyway and education would be less important than practical skills.  And it wasn't just a child-rearing thing.  They were encouraged to make decisions that were good in the SHORT term and forget the long term because they were told there would be no long term.  

Sadly, what no one told these people is what I referenced above: that Millenarianism has a LONG history with Christianity, that these movements and beliefs have been gaining and losing steam for thousands of years, and that the world has remained throughout.  

Anyways, my favorite Millenarian movement is the Tai Ping rebellion, and when I was in Nanjing, I went to the palace.  Please enjoy these photos from it (WAY cooler than Big Sandy, IMO).

Spoiler

Your fearless leader.

Chinese architectural art is often overlooked, which is sad because it is quite stunning.  Do me a solid and take a look at the incredible detail in the screen behind the desk.  I swear the more you look, the more beautiful it becomes.  This is the King's study.

 

TaiPing throne

You know you've made it when you have the resources to put intricate gold dragons on your columns (also in the throne room)

A concubine's chamber

I mean, his study WAS pretty rad, but honestly this was not a good use of his time given the unrest in his kingdom.

This is actually from the Qing dynasty (though in the same location. The Presidential Palace contains MULTIPLE iterations of being the seat of power in Nanjing from various dynasties.), but I wanted to include it because not only is it lovely, but it shows the difference in decor between the chambers of a cult leader seeking to legitimize himself and rule by intimidation and the chambers of a government official secure in his legitimacy.  Secure dynasties/families/people in historic China frequently showed remarkable RESTRAINT in decor.  It was a sign of good character/morals/education.  The TaiPing folks threw that out the window and went with really ostentatious decor because they needed to look more secure than they were.  

 

Edit: You guys I swear to Christ I deleted this mudkip image like 15 times and he keeps coming back so now I'm leaving him.  This is the throne room.  My friend gave me this mudkip to take with me to China, so I threw him in photos from various locations. 

[MathQueen]

All aboard the speculation bus! 

I've been thinking about the finances and how they might work within the Duggar family. I kept coming to the conclusion that something must be different about Jinger and Jeremy for a number of reasons. Someone mentioned earlier (here or on the JinJer thread) that they put, or may have put, a substantial down payment on their home. Jeremy is the pastor of a satellite of a megachurch (associated with the Grace Community Church in southern CA). Many modern churches no longer have a parsonage, or home which is provided gratis for the pastor. Instead, they offer a housing stipend. With a substantial down payment, the stipend might cover the monthly mortgage. In my experience, not all fundies or fundy-lites have a problem with indebtedness in order to purchase a home.  It's a smart way for a pastor to secure his family's future in retirement.The funding for the down payment of Jinger and Jeremy's home would likely require independent sourcing greater than his current salary. Perhaps Jeremy, having signed contracts with large corporations before, chose to keep his personal agency and did not sign off his income from TLC, People, etc.to a Duggar trust. Whether or not Jinger was able or willing to renegotiate as she is no longer a Duggar, they would still be making some money from Jeremy's contracts with media.

So, are they financially independent regarding media compensation? I can't know for sure, but I'm thinking so. After a cursory look online, it appears that the People wedding photos of all the couples except JinJer credit TLC/Discovery or the Duggar family. The JinJer photos on People credit TLC, but then say "Courtesy of JingerandJeremy.com". None of the others couples have this type of designation on their wedding photos. Why are they different? Does this indicate that any payment for photo use rights go there? Perhaps one of FJ's legal professionals can weigh in here.

Could Derrick have realized that he would have been so much better off to have done the same? Is he done with being beholden to JB? The soap opera continues.

[karen77]

FYI, it's Derrick's b-day today too.

[apiscue]

I think that derick wants money, He isn' t in the show anymore, so "Ok, I'm not in the show but I want mine, Daddy."
If he writes a book, I hope it is a Coloring Book.

pdt:  an idea: Where's Pistol Pete?

[SassyPants]

This is better than a Duggar wedding, birth, trip or dental care maintenance visit

Oh and I see there are many FJ members joining SP in the BEC moment!!!

Happy Birthday, DD!

Now get a damn job!

[bekkah]

2 minutes ago, apiscue said:

I think that derick wants money, He isn' t in the show anymore, so "Ok, I'm not in the show but I want mine, Daddy."
If he writes a book, I hope it is a Coloring Book.

Coloring book with chosen bible verses to think about!!!

[Beermeet]

27 minutes ago, Buzzard said:

I'd buy his book.  I bet it would sell more copies than the ghost written duggar bullshit.

I'd listen to your awesome recap of it.

[Georgiana]

@MathQueen, I think you are on to something.  I would imagine that with Jeremy being a preacher who posts videos of his sermons, it would be important for him to control his own media presence.  And since he would have been at least INTRODUCED to media management/cultivating a public image in his soccer days likely has his own familiarity with the way things work, I wouldn't be shocked AT ALL if he refused to jump on to Conductor Jim-Bob's Gravy Train.  

Jeremy also came around post-Joshgate, so it was likely in the back of his mind that this show had the potential to cause him some NEGATIVE publicity that might hurt his actual job.  Therefore I would HOPE that he disentangled himself and his wife from the borg enough that they could easily walk away if filming turned sour.    This would include photo rights, because if a really big scandal hit, they wouldn't want their photos being used in articles to reinforce their connection to the family.  

[SassyPants]

2 minutes ago, Georgiana said:

@MathQueen, I think you are on to something.  I would imagine that with Jeremy being a preacher who posts videos of his sermons, it would be important for him to control his own media presence.  And since he would have been at least INTRODUCED to media management/cultivating a public image in his soccer days likely has his own familiarity with the way things work, I wouldn't be shocked AT ALL if he refused to jump on to Conductor Jim-Bob's Gravy Train.  

Jeremy also came around post-Joshgate, so it was likely in the back of his mind that this show had the potential to cause him some NEGATIVE publicity that might hurt his actual job.  Therefore I would HOPE that he disentangled himself and his wife from the borg enough that they could easily walk away if filming turned sour.    This would include photo rights, because if a really big scandal hit, they wouldn't want their photos being used in articles to reinforce their connection to the family.  

Particularly since he hopped on the train after Josh's behaviors were revealed, so he knows the Duggars aren't all that squeaky clean.

[onekidanddone]

1 hour ago, anjulibai said:

I think a lot of fundies truly believe they live in The End Times, and they don't really expect to need to plan too much for the future. I mean, sure Jim Bob knows he needs to make money, but that's just his instinctual greed. He probably believes, though, that by the time his grandkids are reaching adulthood they'll be raptured up to the Lord and won't have to worry about pesky jobs or making ends meet. 

Called it earlier!

Oh yea, he reads here.

[Ms. Squishels]

2 minutes ago, SassyPants said:

Particularly since he hopped on the train after Josh's behaviors were revealed, so he knows the Duggars aren't all that squeaky clean.

One other thing about Jeremy that is very different from the other in-laws is his family.  They seem to have a lot more sense than most of the other in-law's families.  He may get good advice from his folks, and maybe even insight on dealing with the Duggars.  I sort of think the same about Austin's family.  I know they are very fundie, but they seem to believe in working hard at least.

[Buzzard]

14 minutes ago, bekkah said:

Coloring book with chosen bible verses to think about!!!

The duggars already tried that.  It was an online site that was frequented by FJers and pretty much no one else, makaiziville or something like that.

It was kind of awesome.

[melon]

22 minutes ago, karen77 said:

FYI, it's Derrick's b-day today too.

Mr Melon and Derick have the same birthday.